Christmas in Chicago
by Brown Eyes Parker
Summary: AU. Jane and Lisbon struggle to keep their relationship a secret when they spend Christmas with her family in Chicago. And everybody in the Lisbon family is determined to see them together before they go back to California.
1. Chapter 1

**Christmas in Chicago**

**A Jane & Lisbon Story**

**By Brown Eyes Parker**

**Summary:**

**AU. Jane and Lisbon struggle to keep their relationship a secret when they spend Christmas with her family in Chicago. And everybody in the Lisbon family is determined to see them together before they go back to California. **

**Rating: T**

**Disclaimer:**

**I put it on my Christmas list, but right now at this moment I don't own anything regarding the Mentalist. The only thing I do own is this alternate universe that I've created.**

**Author's Note: **

**Happy December 1****st**** everybody! **

**Just a warning, this has sort of a slow (and boring) build-up. I kind of needed to lay the groundwork for what's coming up. I almost killed myself writing the first chapter, and I started writing in **_**OCTOBER**_**! Please bear with me for this chapter, hopefully it'll pay off. This story is still a work in progress, but I will have it finished by Christmas day. Also, there might be a little bit of OOC, because this is an AU story where Lisbon's parents are alive. And I think that maybe she would have turned out a little differently if she hadn't had to grow up so quickly. Also note that it's hard writing for characters that you know NOTHING about. Anyways, I'm done boring you for now. Onto the story, I hope you enjoy.**

_For Katherine, my inspiration._

**.**

**Chapter 1**

_December 19__th_

"Christmas won't be the same without you this year," Patrick Jane told Teresa Lisbon as he drove her to the airport. "Is there any way what that I can convince you to stay here with me?"

"I wish there was a way I could stay, but I promised my parents that I'd come home this year," Lisbon answered. "I haven't spent Christmas with them in almost ten years."

Jane sighed and pulled into the airport, letting the car stall as he looked at her. "Our first Christmas as a couple and we won't even be together."

"I guess we have to make up for all the Christmases we spent together as friends," Lisbon said lamely. "Listen, I'll be back by New Year's Eve and I'll be all yours. We can do whatever you want."

"Really?" Jane asked.

"Really," Lisbon promised, sighing slightly. "Even if it includes a party with a little black dress and high heels."

"I guess I'll have to think about it," Jane said, looking at the clock radio. "You better go, you don't want to miss your flight."

Lisbon leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. "I'll call you when I land, okay?"

"I'll keep my phone on me," Jane replied, smiling at her. "Now go, the sooner you leave the sooner you'll be able to come back."

"Thank you for letting me go," Lisbon said impulsively. "I was sure that you'd have some elaborate plan to get me to stay here."

"I thought about it for a minute," Jane admitted. "But your family deserves to see you this year."

Lisbon smiled at him. "Thank you," she repeated, kissing him on the cheek again. "See you when I get back."

Jane nodded and watched as she reached into the backseat to get her suitcase and carry-on bag. "Do you need some help."

"I'm fine," Lisbon assured him as she fumbled with the car door. "Stay out of trouble, okay?"

"Okay," Jane agreed.

"I love you," she said as she got out of the car,

"I love you too," Jane replied, wanting to draw out their goodbye just a little bit longer, but not wanting to make her plane at the same time. He watched her disappear into the airport and wondered what he was going to do without her.

At first he had planned on ordering takeout and watching television to pass the time Christmas day, but now the idea of cold Chinese food and an all-day _Scoorged_ marathon on AMC was very unappealing.

**.**

_Chicago_

Lisbon buttoned up her coat and wrapped her scarf tightly around her neck to protect herself against the bitter cold weather.

She had decided on the plane ride to Chicago that she wouldn't think about Jane whole they were apart. But his lonely eyes were the only thing she could really see while she looked for her youngest brother's car. She felt a twinge of guilt for not inviting him to go on her trip with her, especially since they were a couple. But he had insisted that she go by herself because it had been a while since she'd been alone with her family.

"Hey you!" A masculine voice said, breaking into her thoughts. "Need a ride?"

Lisbon smiled as she saw her brother grinning at her from the open window of his SUV.

"That would be nice," she answered.

"Well, I don't think there's enough room for you. Sorry," he replied, getting ready to drive away.

"Joseph Stephen Lisbon!" She said, stomping her foot impatiently.

"Just kidding," Joseph answered, getting out of the car and coming around it to give his sister a hug. "I'm so glad you're here Reese's Peanut Butter Cup."

"I told you _never_ to call me that!" Lisbon said, slapping him playfully upside the head, knocking his Chicago Cub's baseball askew.

"Nobody's around though!" Joseph protested, ducking his head. "Come on _Teresa_!"

Lisbon smirked. "Are mom and dad waiting for us at home?"

"With lunch ready," Joseph replied, tossing her suitcase in the backseat of his car.

"Your Christmas gift is breakable," Lisbon told him as she slid into the passenger seat.

"Really?"

"No," she replied. "But it could have been."

"Oh you think you're so funny, don't you?" Joseph quipped. "You've been hanging around that consultant of yours too much. By the way, where is he? I thought for sure that you would have brought him home for the holidays."

"Why would you think that?" Lisbon asked, trying not to be startled by his statement.

Joseph shrugged. "I don't know. It's just that he's been coming up a lot in our phone conversations and e-mails. I thought that you two might—"

"No!" Lisbon lied empathetically. "We _aren't_! I mean, sometimes he'll spend the night at my condo. . . it's complicated, Joe."

"And I'm just getting my graduate's degree," Joseph said sarcastically. "There's _no way_ that I'd be able to understand complicated. Are you in love with him?"

"See? That's exactly why we _aren't_ getting into it! You translate his staying with me sometimes to me being in love with him."

"Dad and mom think you guys love each other," Joseph said, pulling out of the airport and onto the main highway.

"Did they tell you that in confidence?"

"No, _never_!" Joseph answered. "Scout's honor, they didn't tell me anything! I overheard them talking about it last night."

"You're way too old to be eavesdropping."

"I wasn't eavesdropping exactly!" He protested. "I can't help it that my room is _right_ next to there's!"

Lisbon laughed. "Remember when we were younger, how we used to all cram into your room so we could listen in on dad and mom's private conversations?"

"Of course," Joseph replied. "Remember the time they figured it out and made you, Tommy, and James believe they were sending you to year round boarding school?"

"_You _freaked out!" Lisbon said. "You were afraid that you'd be alone for the rest of your life."

"And we didn't learn our lesson. Three weeks later, you all wanted to eavesdrop again."

Lisbon smiled fondly at the memories. "Those were good times."

"Hey Reese," Joseph said, growing serious. "I really think you should invite Patrick to join us for Christmas. Nobody would mind. We all know you two have spent Christmas together for ten years—"

"Thanks for your concern Joey. But Jane and I will be _fine_, we're both adults."

"Adults that were each other's only family for _ten_ Christmases past," Joseph reasoned. "Are you sure that you'll know what to do without him?"

"Eat something besides Hawaiian pizza and actually win a game of chess," Lisbon replied.

"Well that's just silly," he said. "None of us play chess, but if you're really looking forward to playing it this Christmas you could always call—"

"Joseph!" Lisbon interjected. "I'm _not_ inviting him, okay? The subject is closed."

"I'm your brother, not a member of your team. You can't tell me what to do."

"If you know what's good for you, then you'll listen to me."

"You don't scare me anymore Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. I'm bigger than you are," Joseph taunted.

"Not much," Lisbon retorted.

"But I could still take you," Joseph said.

"Being able to take a girl isn't something to be proud of," Lisbon told him, thankful that the subject of inviting Jane to Chicago for the holidays was closed.

She knew if she were pressured enough, she might cave and invite him to come.

**.**

_Sacramento_

"Don't look so glum," Grace Van Pelt told Jane as she watched him sip his tea. "She's not going to be gone forever, you know."

"I know," Jane replied.

"Then why do you look so upset?" Van Pelt asked. "Has she called you yet?"

"She called me right after she got off the plane," Jane answered, balancing his teacup on the couch's armrest.

Van Pelt's face brightened as she realized what his problem was. "You miss her!"

Jane frowned. "No."

"You're going to miss her then," Van Pelt said. "Come on Jane, everybody knows that you two have been together every Christmas for the past ten years."

"_Working_," Jane reminded her.

"_So_? That doesn't make it any less special," Van Pelt replied. "Why don't you go and see her? Surprise her even, I bet you anything that she'd be happy to see you."

"I can't," Jane answered. "I need to respect her space—"

"You've never respected her space before though!" Van Pelt said. "What makes _this_ time any different. Unless you two are a couple. . . but that's impossible. There's _no way_ you could be dating. . ."

Jane didn't bother to correct her. He knew that Lisbon wouldn't like it if he did, when they had first become a couple, she had requested that they keep their relationship as clandestine as possible.

"It's too bad you don't want to go and surprise Lisbon in Chicago," Van Pelt said slyly, breaking into his thoughts.

"Oh? And why is that?"

"Because about a week ago, Rigsby and I pooled some money together to purchase a plane ticket to Chicago for you."

"You did _what _now?"

"Bought a plane ticket. To Chicago. For you," Van Pelt replied. "You see, we anticipated that you'd be mopey without Lisbon."

She didn't add that nobody really wanted to deal with his mood, and that buying the ticket had originally been rooted in selfishness.

"Really Grace, I don't know what to say," Jane said.

"Say that you'll take the ticket and you'll let me drive you to the airport tomorrow morning," Van Pelt answered.

Jane, who had wanted to go to Chicago the whole time, decided to accept the gift. Consequences be damned.

**.**

_Chicago_

"Hey mom," Joseph said as he and Lisbon rambled into their childhood home. "Look what I found! Can we keep her?"

Maggie Lisbon looked up from the loaf of French bread that she was slicing and threw the serrated knife down on the counter, rushing to wrap her daughter up in a loving embrace.

Lisbon returned her mother's hug and breathed in the familiar smell of Chanel No. 5, chocolate chip cookies, and Downy fabric softener. She closed her eyes and sighed deeply, realizing just how much she had been being home.

After a couple of minutes, Maggie pulled away and studied her. "It's so good to have you home dear!"

"It's good to be home," Lisbon admitted, smiling at her mother. "It's been way too long."

"Well, the important thing is that you're here now!" Maggie said. "Are you hungry? I made lunch! Joe, go and get your father, he's in the den watching the news."

"Sure mom," Joseph answered, stealing the heel of the bread and stuffing it into his mouth.

"So?" Maggie asked, checking the soup she had cooking on the stove.

"So, _what_?" Lisbon answered, sliding into a barstool chair.

"I'm surprised you're here by yourself. I thought for sure that you would have brought your friend Patrick," Maggie said.

"What about James and Steph?" Lisbon asked, quickly changing the subject. "Are they coming from London for the holidays?"

"Not this year," Maggie replied, pulling four bowls down from the cabinet. "Steph's parents invited them to go skiing in Switzerland. They'll be here in February though, maybe he'll have time to swing by Sacramento for a visit. Tommy and Annabeth are going to be here."

"I know," Lisbon said, getting a slice of bread and pulling the crust off it to save for last. "Annie texted me a couple of days ago to make sure that I was still coming—"

"I thought I heard your voice!" Peter Lisbon said as he came into the kitchen with Joseph close behind him. He went over to his oldest child and lifted her off the chair in a bear hug. "Welcome home sweetie!"

"Hi dad," Lisbon replied, smiling slightly as he put her back down.

"You're too thin," he mused. "What are they feeding you over there in California?"

Lisbon laughed. "Plenty. These days Jane makes sure I'm well-fed."

"Jane, ha?" Peter said, his lips twitching. "So, you've finally managed to close the deal with him?"

"Dad!" Lisbon answered, slightly mortified. "That really isn't any of your business!

"So you two _aren't_ together yet?"

"Not exactly," she lied, her cheeks flushing pink.

"Not exactly," Peter repeated, winking at Joseph. "So, then it's something you two are talking about."

"You want me to say yes, don't you?"

"We all like Patrick," Maggie told her as she slid a bowl of soup across the counter to her husband. "He's been sad for so long and you, you haven't had a serious boyfriend since Greg. You both deserve a little happiness."

Lisbon almost gave in and told them that she and Jane _were _seeing each other as more than friends and co-workers. But she wasn't ready for the questions that would follow the announcement. So, she let it go and ate her lunch while her father continued his good-natured teasing about Jane and her together (with added comments from her mother about how adorable the grandbabies would be and offensive suggestions from her brother about personal things).

**.**

Later on, after she had helped her mother clean up in the kitchen she went to find her brother while her parents took an afternoon rest.

She found in in the living room sitting on the floor with his laptop and watching reruns of _Friends_ with the volume on low.

He smiled when he saw her and motioned for her to come in. "You always liked _Friends_," he said as she settled into her father's worn, leather recliner.

"Only the seasons where Monica and Chandler are together," Lisbon replied. "They were the best couple on show."

Joseph scoffed. "Says _you_."

"Says a lot of people!" Lisbon retorted.

"What's Jane's opinion of _Friends_?" Joseph asked. "Does _he _think they're the best couple on the show?"

"We haven't talked about it," Lisbon answered.

"Does he even like _Friends_?"

"I have no idea Joe!" She replied, slightly exasperated. "Why does it even matter?"

"Well, if you're going to date him than shouldn't you know his preference about Monica and Chandler versus Ross and Rachel?"

"Jane's more of a nature show, _Iron Chef of America _kind of guy," Lisbon answered. "I don't think he even knows who Ross and Rachel are."

"Everybody knows who they are. You'd have to live under a rock _not _to know who they are," Joseph said.

Lisbon rolled her eyes and looked around the living room. "What's going on with the house this year? Mom usually has it decorated from top to bottom by now."

She wanted to wait for the whole entire family to get here so we could decorate together just like we did when we were kids."

"I haven't decorated in ages," Lisbon mused.

"Not even your office?"

"Hardly! Two of the members on my team will decorate a little bit, but only with mistletoe and one of those Charlie Brown trees from the pharmacy."

"Like one of those novelty, brand-name Charlie Brown Christmas trees?

"It fits on Jane's desk," Lisbon explained. "Otherwise there wouldn't even be a tree."

"You're such a Scrooge."

"You've seen our bullpen," Lisbon said. "Do you think there's room for a seven-foot Christmas tree?"

Joseph smirked. "You could move that old leather couch. It would be an improvement."

"That's not going to happen," Lisbon replied. "Jane would never go for it."

"Oh," Joseph said slyly. "But mom told me that you told her that Jane spends most of his time on the couch in _your _office."

"He's been doing that for years now," Lisbon said, waving her hand in the air dismissively. "Now can we _please_ talk about anything other than Patrick? I mean _Jane_!?"

"Fine," Joseph agreed with a sigh. "Have you seen any good movies lately?"

"Jane took me to see _Hitchcock_," Lisbon said without thinking.

"Really?" Joseph asked. "Did you and Jane enjoy it?"

"Yes," Lisbon answered. "What about you?"

"I didn't see _Hitchcock_," he replied.

"I was actually going to ask if you were seeing anybody," Lisbon said.

"Oh. . . nobody of significance, really. The assistant library is pretty cute, but I don't have time to date right now."

"You should make time."

"Look who's talking!" Joseph retorted. "_You_ don't make time for dating!"

"We weren't talking about me," Lisbon replied smoothly. "Come on Joe, when was the last time you had a serious girlfriend?"

"I can't really remember."

"Okay, if you talk to that cute assistant librarian the next time you see her, then I'll—"

"Ask Jane out?" Joseph asked.

"No," Lisbon answered. "But I will pay for your date, if talking to her leads to that."

"Really?"

"If you don't take her somewhere outrageously expensive, remember, that I'm a detective. Not a lawyer."

"I'll think about it," Joseph said.

"I guess I'll have to be fine with that," Lisbon replied, getting more comfortable and smiling at him through a yawn. "I'm going to take a nap, wake me up before mom starts making dinner. Okay?"

"Sure."

Lisbon had a fleeting feeling that he wouldn't wake her up just because he thought it would be funny if he let her oversleep.

**.**

"Hey Auntie Reese!" Lisbon vaguely heard somebody say, she didn't know how many hours later. "Grandma said to wake you up because dinner's just about done."

She opened one eye and saw her niece, Annie looking down at her with a grin.

"Annie, when did you get here?" She asked as she blinked a couple of times and stretched.

"About an hour or so ago," the younger girl replied. "I was going to wake you up, but Uncle Joe said that you were really tired and needed your rest."

Lisbon rolled her eyes and ran a hand through her hair. "Yeah, well Uncle Joe doesn't always know what he's talking about. You should have come and woken me up."

"Well, now I'll know for next time if there is a next time," Annie said cheerfully. "So!?"

"So. . . _what_?" Lisbon asked cautiously.

"Where's Mr. Jane? I thought for sure that you would have brought him with you!"

Lisbon frowned. "What made you think that Annabeth?"

"Well. . ." Annie answered slowly. "One of your e-mails from earlier in the summer implied he was living with you. So, I sort of thought—"

For a second, Lisbon considered telling her the truth. But she didn't know if she could trust her niece to keep the information to herself. So, she put her arm around Annie and changed the subject as she guided her to the kitchen.

The truth about her relationship with Jane would come out soon.

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**So, the groundwork is sort of laid. Hope it didn't turn you off too much, if you want to leave me a review then I wouldn't be opposed to hearing your thoughts.**

**Until next time!**

**Love,**

**Holly, 12/1/2012_**


	2. Chapter 2

**Shout-outs:**

**AngryLittlePrincess, iRead, AJ, Lalalupin, , Sierra, lisbonandjanealways, Lothlorien Aeterna, Donnaour1969, guest, guest, Totorsg, and crazyanalyst for their reviews on the first chapter. Much love to you all!**

**Disclaimer: **

**I own nothing, but I'm thinking about going to see Santa Claus at the mall and having a chat with him about getting it.**

**.**

**Chapter 2**

_December 20__th_

Chicago was freezing cold. But Jane barely registered the frigid weather as he waited for somebody in the Lisbon household to answer the door. All he was thinking about was Lisbon's reaction when she saw him standing on her parent's porch.

He was just about to knock again when the front door flew open and Lisbon's face peeked out at him. He opened his mouth to say something, but as soon as he did his carefully rehearsed speech disappeared and he waited for her to speak first.

After studying him carefully for a few minutes, she _did_ say something as she stepped outside and leaned against the glass door, wrapping her arms around her waist to protect herself from the frosty air.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, without even bothering to greet him first.

He grinned. "I decided that I didn't want to spend Christmas without you."

Lisbon's heart skipped a beat as she schooled her features so he wouldn't know how happy she was to see him. "So, you just decided to get on a plane and come all the way to Chicago because you didn't want to spend Christmas alone?"

"Well. . . sort of," Jane answered. "Really, I planned on staying in Sacramento. But then Van Pelt gave me a ticket to come to Chicago—"

"Hold on a second!" Lisbon interjected. "_Van Pelt_ gave you a plane ticket to come here?"

"Well, Van Pelt and Rigsby actually gave me the ticket together."

Lisbon frowned. "Why would they do that?"

"She didn't say exactly," Jane answered. "But I get the distinct feeling that nobody really wanted me around."

Lisbon's lips twitched. "I have no idea where you'd get _that_ idea."

"She mentioned that I was mopey without you," Jane said.

"Well, I guess I should invite you in."

"That would be nice," he replied.

"Okay," Lisbon said, putting her hand on his chest. "Remember, when we're with my family we're best friends and co-workers. _Nothing_ else!"

"When are we anything_ but_?"

"Patrick, this is serious!" Lisbon retorted. "You really have to help me out here, please don't let my family know we're together. Not yet, anyways."

"You worry too much," Jane replied, taking her hands and kissing her fingertips. "You don't have to though, I won't say a word."

"_Promise!" _Lisbon stressed.

"Cross my heart," he said, putting her hand over it.

Lisbon blushed slightly as she tried to pull away. "Stop it! What if somebody comes out?"

"You must have a sixth sense," Jane replied, nodding at the door.

Lisbon jumped away just as it swung open and her mother came out. "Honey, is everything okay. . .? Oh, Patrick! We weren't expecting _you_ to be here."

"I wasn't expecting to be here either," he answered. "But here I am."

"Here you are," Maggie replied, smiling broadly. "I hope Reese wasn't planning on keeping you out on the porch all day."

"She invited me in," Jane assured her. "We were just discussing something—"

"Work related," Lisbon added. "A case we closed before Christmas vacation started."

"Oh. Well, lunch is almost ready," Maggie said.

"Good," Jane replied. "I'm starving."

"We have plenty of food, so don't be shy about eating as much as you want," Maggie told him.

"He never is," Lisbon muttered, earning her a playful pinch from Jane as he followed her into the house.

**.**

"Look who showed up!" Maggie announced as she entered the kitchen with Jane and Lisbon trailing her. "Everybody, you remember meeting Patrick when we were in Sacramento last year."

"Of course we do!" Peter said cheerfully. "It's nice to see you again Patrick. Although, your being here is a surprise. Teresa said that she wasn't going to invite you, even though we _all_ told her that it would be okay if she did."

"Oh, but Teresa didn't invite me!" Jane said. "I got a ticket and decided to surprise her. I just can't imagine spending Christmas without her, I'm so used to it now."

"Me too," Lisbon agreed, hoping that Jane would be able to tell she really was happy that he was there.

He smiled at her and she was sure that he'd gotten her message.

"So, Patrick how are you with Christmas decorations?" Peter asked.

"I know my way around a tree," Jane answered.

"Good, you're on tree duty then!"

"Peter!" Maggie chided as she started to serve up lunch. "You don't have to put the tree up, Patrick. My husband tries to give that particular job to somebody else every single year."

"Actually, I don't mind setting the tree up," Jane answered. "It's been a while since I got the chance to do it."

"See?" Peter said. "He _wants_ to help!"

"Careful dad, he might only be trying to get on your good side to get something from you," Lisbon teased.

"My intentions are pure," Jane said. "Scout's honor."

"Oh, I didn't know you were a Boy Scout," Lisbon answered as she took a plate of food from her mom and sat down.

"I wasn't ever a Boy Scout."

"Of course not," Lisbon replied, twirling pasta around on her fork and smiling demurely at him.

"One time, a troop of Boy Scouts came to the carnival. One of them dropped their handbooks and I found it while I was cleaning up the grounds after everybody had left for the day," Jane explained. "I read the whole thing cover-to-cover and pretended that I could become one."

"You never told me that you wanted to be a Boy Scout."

"Meh, it wasn't important," Jane said, waving her off. "It was just a boyish fantasy."

"Do you two quite frequently forget that there are other people in the room?" Joseph asked through a mouthful of Coke.

"What?" Lisbon asked, flushing slightly. _"No!"_

**.**

"Maggie, unless you can find a way to keep the lights untangled, I don't think we'll use them again next year."

"Oh Peter," she clucked. "You said that _last _year though too."

"Well, I mean it this time—"

"You're_ not_ lifting me up to put the angel on top of the tree this year," Annie interjected.

"Why not?" Peter asked. "It's a tradition—"

"Because it's embarrassing," she answered. "I'm not a little girl anymore; I'm going to be sixteen."

"It's only us though," Peter replied. "And Jane. . ."

"I should have just decorated by myself," Maggie muttered as she observed Jane struggling to straighten the tree all by himself and Lisbon laughing at him whole she assembled the wooden Nativity on the piano.

Family decorating in the Lisbon house was always more difficult than it was worth.

**.**

"This is your room?" Jane asked later that night.

Lisbon dropped the bedding that she had gotten from the linen cabinet on the floor and nodded. "I know it's a little retro, but I haven't redecorated since I was a senior in high school."

"It doesn't look like you've updated your collection of books either," Jane replied, scanning the titles on the bookshelf and taking in the mixture of American Girl books, Harlequin romance novels, classics, Nancy Drew, and Boxcar Children.

"My aunt gave me the American Girl books," Lisbon answered. "For some reason, she wanted me to have everything her daughter had."

"I was just going to say that you have a solid collection of literature here," Jane said, plucking a book off her shelf. "_Impulsive Challenge_, this. . . this is good."

Lisbon stalked over to him and snatched the book from his hands, slapping him playfully on the shoulder with it. "Romance novels were just a stage in my life. I honestly loved classics the best."

"What was your favorite?" Jane asked.

"I didn't have a favorite," she answered putting _Impulsive Challenge_ back on the shelf. "Except, well. . . I really enjoyed Sherlock Holmes—"

"Inevitable," Jane replied.

"And I _loved_ Wooster and Jeeves," Lisbon continued. "I still do actually. P.G Wodehouse is a nice reprieve from all the crime solving we do in real life."

Jane smiled mischievously at Lisbon. "Now tell me dear, did you ever sneak _Impulsive Challenge_ during chapel when you were in school?"

"No," Lisbon answered. "I didn't, that was _the Uncertain Heart_, and I read it in the bathroom during lunch."

"So, you didn't have any friends?"

"I did! They were there too," she said. "Nobody really wanted the nuns to know we were reading trashy romance novels behind our chemistry books."

Jane shook his head. "All these years Teresa Lisbon and you never cease to amaze me."

Lisbon smiled at him. "I'm glad, at least you aren't bored with me yet."

"I could never be bored with you," Jane assured her, reaching out to squeeze her hands.

"You better let me make your bed up. It's getting late and you must be tired," Lisbon said, squeezing his hands in return.

"Okay," Jane agreed.

Lisbon bent over and picked up the comforter, she shook it out before spreading it carefully out on the ground. She glanced up at Jane and grinned slightly. "Oh, and since I forgot to say it earlier. . . I'm glad you're here."

**TBC. . .**

**.**

**Author's Notes:**

**No excuses, no warnings, no apologizes for this chapter. I'm leaving it in the hands of my readers to tell me what you're thinking. Click on the review button if you feel like it, I'd love to hear your thoughts.**

**Lots of love,**

**Holly, 12/8/2012_**


	3. Chapter 3

**Shout-outs: meguie, Special Agent Baker, ReAdErOnLy, Lothlorien Aeterna, GyMusicAddict, ShellGrad, xs18, Guest, Mentalgal, AngryLittlePrincess, SteelSimz, Totorsg, and Dempeo4ever81 for their reviews on chapter 2. Lots of love to all of you! **

**Author's Note: **

**I'm posting a day early because I'm going to be Christmas partying all weekend and won't have a chance to do it tomorrow. It starts tonight, I'm dressed up almost exactly like a Delia's model and I'm not wearing my hair in a ponytail. This geek looks good. Which is weird, because I always look geeky.**

**Rated: T**

**Disclaimer:**

**I own NOTHING. **

_Sending love, light, and prayers out to eveyrbody in CT tonight. _

**.**

**Chapter 3**

_December 21__st_

Lisbon woke up the next morning tangled up in heavy blankets and masculine arms. She remembered sometime in the middle of the night, Jane had crawled into bed with her on the pretense he was cold on the floor.

But she knew it was really because he had gotten used to her as his body pillow, they'd been sharing a bed even before they had become boyfriend and girlfriend. They both liked the security that they got from being side-by-side.

"Patrick," Lisbon whispered, shaking him gently.

"Do we have a case?" Jane asked without opening his eyes.

"No. We're on Christmas vacation in Chicago," Lisbon answered. "Remember?"

Jane rolled his eyes as he opened them. "Of course I remember."

"I was planning on going to all my favorite spots in Chicago, and I was wondering if you wanted to come with me."

"Are you leaving _right_ now?"

"Well, I was planning to leave before everybody else wakes up and decides to come along with us," Lisbon replied.

"Just give me a minute to get dressed," Jane said, sitting up and stretching.

Lisbon jumped out of bed and grabbed some clothes from her suitcase. "Meet me on the porch in five minutes!"

"Five minutes?"

"Four!" Lisbon said over her shoulder as she dashed out of her room.

**.**

"This was my favorite restaurant to eat at as a kid," Lisbon told Jane as they waited to be seated at a place called Sweet Maple Café. "My dad would take me here for breakfast on Saturday morning. It would be just the two of us and he'd let me order whatever I wanted, even if it was a little more than he could afford. And—"

"And you always wanted to have a kid so you could carry on the tradition," Jane said, finishing the story for her without thinking.

She blushed a little bit. "Yeah."

"Teresa, you know it could—"

"Lisbon, party of two!" The perky, teen hostess with red and green streaks in her hair called, cutting Jane off mid-sentence.

"Oh good, our tables ready!" Lisbon said, hopping up and grabbing his hand. "I'm starving! And I bet you are too. Come on, you're going to _love_ the eggs."

**.**

"So, what's on the agenda for the rest of the day?" Jane asked, stealing one of Lisbon's bacon strips.

"Hey! Eat your own food!" She said, pushing his hand away.

Jane laughed and captured her hand. "Your plan, my dear lady."

A stop by my old high school," Lisbon answered, taking a sip of her coffee. "And this really old, used bookstore where I had my first job _ever_, then a really long walk in the park. We'll have to go home for lunch, or my mom will start calling non-stop. Unless, there's something you'd like to do."

"I already did everything in Chicago that one time the carnival stopped here."

"You never told me that your carnival came here," Lisbon said, putting her forkful of pancake down and looking at him with wide eyes. "Do you think. . ."

"We could have met? No, I would have remembered if we'd met."

"I was just going to ask if you maybe you thought that I could have gone to your carnival."

"No," Jane answered. "If you'd have gone, you certainly would remember it. And I would have remembered seeing you there. I used to sit in the Ferris wheel and watch people. I never forget a face. Ever."

Lisbon smiled. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"You're not even going to say anything to me about people watching?" He asked as she threw some money on the table.

"It was very wrong, you should be ashamed of yourself," Lisbon answered as she pulled on her gloves then took his hand. "Why does it matter of I say anything or not? You don't ever listen to me anyways."

"Not true," Jane argued. "I listen to you _plenty_."

"Do you want me to list all the times that you _didn't _listen to me?" She asked.

"No," Jane answered, holding the door open for an elderly couple as they came into the café. "I'm good, thank you."

Lisbon laughed and pulled him along with her. "Come on," she said. "Let's go and walk off breakfast. I want to stay in shape for work."

**.**

It started to snow when their small tour of Chicago had ended.

Jane watched in awe as his normally composed Lisbon stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and lifted her face to the sky, trying to catch snowflakes on her tongue.

She was so adorable standing there in her red-and-white, striped ski cap and with her eyes closed, that he couldn't help himself. He closed the distance between them, framed her face with his hands and kissed her lips.

"What was that for?" Lisbon asked, her breath hitching slightly in her throat as he pulled away.

"Do I need a reason to kiss my girlfriend?" Jane asked.

"You've never kissed me before now," Lisbon answered, avoiding his eyes. "What makes today any different. I thought that we both agreed—"

"We did," Jane said. "I'm sorry—"

"Don't be sorry!" Lisbon protested, her tingling lips and skittering pulse screamed for her to put her arms around him and kiss him again. "It was-it was nice."

Jane nodded, wanting nothing more for a repeat performance of their kiss and to get away from her all at the same time.

Things had suddenly changed between them, and he didn't know how to handle it.

**.**

"There you two are!" Peter said as Jane and Lisbon came into the kitchen. "We were just beginning to wonder where you ran off to. I was betting you two had eloped or something—"

"Nope," Lisbon replied easily. "We got breakfast at Sweet Maple and then I gave him a little tour of all my favorite places in Chicago. Totally, totally innocent stuff."

"A father can hope, can't he?" Peter answered.

Lisbon smiled faintly and then turned to her mother. "Could we talk in private?" She requested.

"Of course sweetheart," Maggie answered, wiping her hands off on a towel. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," Lisbon assured her, avoiding Jane's steady gaze. "I just need to talk to somebody."

**.**

"We're dating," she blurted out the second she and Jane were alone.

"Who?" Maggie asked, looking slightly befuddled. "You and. . . Patrick?"

"Yes! We've been dating since June!" Lisbon said. "We decided to keep it a secret because it's more a companionable thing than anything. You know? We sleep in the same bed, but it's because we like having somebody with us."

"Companionable but not passionate," Maggie answered. "Almost like an old married couple."

"Yes," Lisbon replied. "Everything about our relationship is sweet. He makes me breakfast in bed and folds my delicates. I make his tea and watch documentaries about pandas with him."

"_Pandas?"_ Maggie repeated.

"Well, it depends on what the Discovery channel is showing that night," Lisbon said. "He kisses me on the cheek before he leaves for work, and we say _I love you _before we go to bed. It's nice. . . it's one of the nicest relationships that I've ever had."

"It is nice," Maggie answered. "But what happens when one of you wakes up and realizes that you want more? Do you think really think that either of you could truly be happy in a passionless relationship?"

Lisbon shrugged, her mind going back to Jane's lips pressed against her's. There had been years and years of restrained passion that had been begging to be released in that kiss. . . on both their parts.

"I—" she faltered slightly. "I really don't know, Mom."

**TBC. . .**

**.**

**Author's Note:**

**Yeah, kind of angsty and maybe a bit rushed. But I had a really hard time writing this chapter; it took me three tries before I remotely got to where I wanted to be. The power is in YOUR hands now. To review or not to review, that is the question. I'm not going to beg or threaten. I'm letting you decide what to do.**

**Just a note before I go, Jane and Lisbon being boyfriend/girlfriend but in name only was the plan the whole time. I needed a point of conflict, and I decided to go in that direction because, I dunno. I liked the idea of them being in love and together, but knowing they were in love. If that makes any sense at all. **

**Lots of love,**

**Holly, 12/14/2012_**


	4. Chapter 4

**Shout-outs: Totorsg, lollierocker, meguie, Chymom, ReAdErOnLy, Mentalgal, Water-please, you lost me, Lalalupin, GyMusicAddict, n3tRN, crazyanalylst, ShellGrad, xs18, Lothlorien Aeterna, Linnspinn, and Special Agent Baker for their reviews!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Not even the laptop I'm typing this story on.**

**Rated: T**

**Meguie: Thank you for your compliment on my being "perfect". I am flattered that you think I should write "all" the Mentalist episodes, it's actually a dream of mine to write at least one episode for the show.**

**Chymom: Hope this is soon enough.**

**ReAdErOnLy: I'm trying to write quickly. I had a fun time at my parties. Though, I do have a tiny bit of a sinus infection. It almost made it unenjoyably. **

**you lost me: You probably aren't reading this right now, but I'm sorry I lost you. I have reasons for doing everything I did in this story. Like I said, I needed conflict and I didn't want it to be the same old thing, where Lisbon questions their relationship or her old boyfriend (or Mashburn comes) and tries to get her to break up with Jane. **

**idon'thaveaname: You didn't miss anything darling, it's an alternate universe. Like a "what if" story. **

**.**

**Chapter 4**

_December 22__nd_

The next day, it was almost like the kiss had never happened, but at the same time it still hung in the air between them, pleading to be explored, begging for the couple to unlock doors that they had hidden the keys to when they had agreed to only be partial lovers.

It had been stupid to think they could have a relatively platonic relationship. They were two grown adults, not second graders trading candy ring pops and pretending to get married on the playground during recess with their eight-year-old classmates as their witnesses.

He had known when he had first set the terms for their relationship that one day, one of them would want something more from their relationship. He'd just never thought it he'd actually be the first one who wanted it the most. For some reason, he had always thought it would be Lisbon who'd drag him into something more and he wouldn't realize how much he wanted something more too until they were in it.

"You should ask her to dance instead of just staring at her all night," Joseph teased, breaking into Jane's thoughts.

"Was I staring?" Jane asked, recovering nicely.

"Dude, you haven't taken your eyes off of her all night," Joseph replied. "Come on, the party will be over soon and you'll miss her chance completely if you don't act soon."

"Asking her to dance isn't the best idea right now," Jane said.

Joseph frowned. "Did you two have an argument or something? Because you haven't really spoken to each other all day, which is weird, because everybody knows that the two of you are completely joined at the hip."

"We're _fine_," Jane assured the youngest Lisbon. "We just needed some space. And besides, your sister came to see you. Not spend time running around Chicago with me."

"Well, I still think you should ask her to dance," Joseph said. "I mean, she's actually wearing a dress. In all the Christmas parties we've had at this church, Reese has _never_ worn a dress."

Jane glanced over at Lisbon, who caught his eye and smiled, waving a little bit at him while she brushed a stray curl away from her face and then turned her attention back to the elderly woman she was speaking with.

"She won't want to dance with me," Jane said, unable to look away from her for even a second.

"I think you're wrong," Joseph answered, pushing the consultant towards his sister. "I know Reese, and I can tell that she's _dying_ for you to dance with her. Go on, make up and be friends again."

**.**

"I didn't know you were coming to see me," Lisbon said, her smile widening when she looked up and saw him standing next to her.

"I didn't know it either, until somebody pointed out to me that it's the last dance of the evening," Jane replied taking in her messy bun and the curls framing her face. "And I was just wondering. . . well, I hate to interrupt your conversation."

Lisbon laughed and ran her hand down her red dress. "Now Patrick, we both know that interrupting my conversations _never_ seems to fazes you."

Jane merely grinned in reply. "Anyways, I just came over here to see if you wanted to dance with me. Since it is the _last _dance of the evening."

"I'd love to dance with you," Lisbon answered, turning to her companion. "Mrs. Forest, would you please excuse me for a minute?"

"Of course darling, go and dance with your beau," Mrs. Forest answered with a sly smile as she waved her wrinkled, bejeweled hand in the air like a queen commanding her subjects.

"Oh, but Mrs. Forest. . . he _isn't_ my beau! We're just friends—" Lisbon started as Jane whisked her away.

"Really Lisbon, lying to a little old lady!" Jane clucked his tongue and shook his head as he put his arms around her and started to sway to what he thought was a slow song.

"Hold on a second Jane," Lisbon said, pushing him away. "This isn't exactly a slow dance."

Jane stopped for a second and listened as the Catholic school's lead glee club singers stopped singing the Nat King Cole song they'd been singing and broke into _Shout _by the Isley Brothers.

"And here I always thought that you ended the night with slow dances," Jane answered.

"Not here," Lisbon replied, trying not to burst into laughter by the look on his face as the dance floor started to fill up with kids jumping up and down while they sang along to the song at the top of their lungs. "It's a tradition that started when _I_ was in high school, actually. You see, the lead singer of the glee club back then had just broken up with his girlfriend. I guess he didn't want to sing love songs, so right when he was beginning to sing whatever mushy song he was supposed to sing, he broke out into _Shout_ and now all the glee kids do it every year at the end of the annual Christmas party."

"And the sisters liked this?" Jane asked, watching as Joseph and Annie joined them on the dance floor.

"Not at first," she answered. "Actually, Mother Superior kicked Kenny out of the glee club because he went off the format. It was too late though, he had started a mini-revolution."

"And was he the mean-spirited guy that you worshipped from afar?" Jane asked teasingly.

"No, definitely not!" Lisbon answered with a laugh. "Kenny was one of the sweetest boys that you'd ever meet."

"And he definitely wasn't listening to the words when he decided to sing _Shout_ of all songs in protest of love. I mean, have you really listened to the lyrics? He's telling a woman that she makes him want to shout because she belongs to him or something like that."

Lisbon laughed again as she pulled him out of the throng of people and towards the metal chairs where they had stashed their coats. "Well, nobody said that Kenny was the sharpest crayon in the box. Come on; let's get out of here. . . unless you still want to dance."

"No. We can go," Jane answered, picking her coat up and helping her into it. He leaned into her for a second, his lips brushing her ear as he lowered his voice. "But you owe me one."

"And I'm going to pay you back as soon as possible," she said, turning around to look at him as she buttoned her coat and pulled her gloves on with a little smile on her face.

**.**

"Come on," Lisbon said, pulling Jane to the den after locking the front door behind them.

She took her coat off and threw it on the couch, then went over to her father's old record collection. She flipped through the vinyls and smiled when she found the one she was looking for. She dropped it on the old record player and came over to him as Bing Crosby's voice filled the air.

"Ask me to dance," she all but ordered.

"I already did," Jane replied, slipping his hand into her's. "Back at the church."

"Do it again."

"Okay," he finally obliged after a minute. "Dance with me Teresa?"

She nodded, putting her arms around him and swaying slowly to the music while she whispered the words of the song into his ear.

"_Let me call you sweetheart, I'm in love with you. Let me hear you whisper that you love me too,"_

Jane pulled away from her and looked into her eyes, suddenly seeing the same intense longing that he'd been feeling all day. His heart stopped beating for a second as she smiled at him encouragingly, he was just about to lean down and kiss her even more passionately than before when Joseph and Annie burst into the room.

The pair pushed each other away quickly and put as much distant between each other as possible.

"There you guys are!" Annie said, flopping down on the couch and grabbing the remote control. "Everyone was wondering what had happened to you."

"We decided to come home a little early," Lisbon answered lightly. "That's all."

"But we all went to the church together. So, you didn't have a car," Annie pointed out. "How did you get home?"

"The way I always got around when I was younger and carless," Lisbon replied. "We walked."

Annie looked down at her aunt's feet. "You walked in _those _shoes?"

"They're three inches, Annabeth. Not five inch stilettoes."

Annie didn't reply as she grabbed a handful of dark chocolate Hershey kisses and turned the television on. "So, what were you two doing when we came in a few minutes ago?"

"Nothing really," Jane answered before Lisbon had the opportunity to. "We were discussing Christmas presents actually. I was telling her that I didn't have a chance to get anything for you guys, and she said that we could go shopping tomorrow if I _really_ needed to pick gifts up."

"Right," Lisbon agreed. "We were discussing Christmas presents. I'm craving hot chocolate, what about you guys?"

"Hot chocolate sounds good," Annie said, grinning slightly as she settled on _the Nanny_.

"Come and help me, Jane?" Lisbon requested.

"Of course," Jane replied, following her out of the living room.

"So, what do you think Uncle Joe?" Annie asked after they'd disappeared. "Are they together or not?"

"I'd like to say that they're a couple, but they've always acted like they're an old married couple, so I'm really not sure."

Annie sighed in frustration as she muted a commercial. "But he _does _like her, right? And I mean does he like her more than a friend?"

Joseph shrugged. "I guess so. But he's always liked her."

"Then why aren't they together?"

"Because they're adults," Joseph replied. "Everything's more complicated when you're older."

"I seriously hope you're counting yourself in that category," Annie said as she chucked a deep purple foil wrapper at his nose.

"I don't have time for complicated," he answered, throwing the wrapper back at his niece. "I'm just trying to get through graduate school."

"So, does that mean you won't try and help me get them together?" Annie asked, raising her eyebrows.

"As much as I'd love to see them get together and as much as I love teasing Reese about them getting together, I really think that we're just going to have to _not_ interfere and let them get together by themselves."

"But you saw them when we came into the living room. They were _almost_ kissing!" Annie protested. "You know how honesty needs a little plus? Fate needs a little shove."

Joseph looked at her in amazement and then burst into laughter. "I've heard people quote White Christmas _so _many different times in my life. But I have never heard anybody quote _that particular_ line before."

Annie playfully stuck her tongue out at him before eating another chocolate. "Are you avoiding the topic at hand Uncle?"

"I'm not helping you get Patrick and Teresa together," Joseph replied. "_No way_, interfering in other people's lives is a sure fire way to get yourself into trouble."

Annie sighed mournfully and gave him her best puppy dog eyes. "Please? Please?"

"Who are you hanging out with these days?" Joseph asked. "You were never like this before; you were always a lot more mature than the other girls your age. When all the other girls were arguing Team Jacob versus Team Edward, you were _laughing_ at them!"

"I'm still the same person I was last year," Annie answered. "I just want to see my aunt happy with the man that she's so obviously in love with."

Joseph smiled like he knew a secret. "Just give it a little time; I'm sure if you're a very good girl then Santa will give you exactly what you want for Christmas."

**.**

"I think they almost caught us," Lisbon whispered as she filled a worn looking kettle with water from the tap and placed it on the stove. "The hot chocolate is on the top shelf, second cabinet from the left."

Jane took a deep breath as he took out a box of Swiss Miss and ripped it open before dumping a package of cocoa mix into a mug with Hermey and Rudolph on it. "Maybe we should just tell them."

"Tell them?" Lisbon repeated, frowning slightly. "Patrick, what are you saying?"

"I'm not sure yet," Jane answered. "Give me a little while to think about it, and I'll tell you about it later."

**TBC. . . **

**Author's Note:**

**Does that classify as a cliff-hanger? Or a crappy, unfinished thought? Speaking of thoughts, I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter. Too rushed? Or whatever, I love hearing from all of you. **

**Love,**

**Holly, 12/20/2012_**


	5. Chapter 5

**Shout-Outs: ReAdErOnLy, meguie, CastleTyger, Lalalupin, Special Agent Baker, GyMusicAddict, Guest, and TheBonesGirl39 for the reviews on chapter 4**

**Disclaimer: **

**I own nothing. **

**Rating: T**

**.**

**Chapter 5**

_December 23__rd_

"Excuse me," Jane said, addressing the well-dressed woman behind the counter at the mall jewelry store. "I was wondering if I could ask a favor. . ."

"Of course!" She answered, smiling at him and taking in his expensive suit as dollars signs appeared in her eyes. "What is it exactly that you're looking for?"

"An empty jewelry box," Jane replied, fiddling with his wedding ring.

"An _empty_ jewelry box?" The woman repeated, looking disappointed at the loss of a sale. "And what kind of jewelry box do you need today?"

"A ring box," Jane answered.

The woman went behind the counter without saying a word and pulled a key out of her pocket; she unlocked one of the cases and fumbled around for a while before pulling out an engagement ring box.

"Will this be good enough?" She asked, holding it up for him to examine.

"Yes," Jane answered. "That will be just fine, thank you. How much do I owe you?"

"You know what, _take_ it!" She said, handing it over to him.

"Are you sure?" Jane asked, sliding the box into his suit jacket pocket.

"Positive."

Jane smiled. "Well, thank you! And I hope you have a merry Christmas!"

"You too," the woman replied, cracking a hint of a grin. "Good luck with whatever it is that you're doing with that ring box."

**.**

"You're both adults," Peter answered as he leaned back in his recliner and muted the television. "You don't _need_ my permission to pursue a deeper relationship with Teresa. In fact, I don't even know why you're bothering to ask my permission now. You didn't do it _before_."

Jane smiled sheepishly and then frowned, his eyebrows furrowing slightly. "Wait, you knew we've been in a relationship this whole time!?"

"I am a detective, Patrick. I may not be as good as you or my daughter, but I do know how to pick up on obvious clues," Peter answered.

"And what was the most obvious clue that Teresa and I were in a relationship?" Jane asked.

"Nothing is more obvious than in the way the two of you look at each other," Peter answered. "Especially when you don't think anybody else is looking. And you did show up here, I didn't believe for a second that it was just because you two were used to spending Christmas together. If you were just friends, I'm sure that you would have been able to handle _one _week without her. Besides all that, she's talked about you a lot more in the past six months than she ever has."

Jane took a deep breath, carefully composing what he was going to say next, before shrugging. "Six months ago, I was a complete idiot. I knew I wanted your daughter in my life, and that I didn't want to lose her to anybody else. I just thought I could have her without actually having her. I found out I was wrong though, I can't just live with her forever without –"

"Patrick," Peter interjected. "You have my permission to do whatever it is that you want to with my daughter. Never in my life have I seen two people who deserve each other more than the two of you do. Just make sure you take care of her, okay?"

"I promise," Jane answered.

**.**

Jane found Lisbon outside, building a snowman with Annie and Joseph. She smiled when she saw him coming towards him and excused herself, meeting him halfway as she wiped her hands off on her coat.

"I've been wondering where you were this morning," she said as she smiled at him, her cheeks flushed a pleasing shade of pink because of the cold air.

"I was talking to your father," he replied.

"Oh?"

"I think we need to talk somewhere alone," Jane answered nodding towards Annie and Joseph, who were looking at them with intense interest.

"Okay," Lisbon agreed. "Let's go for a walk then."

"You lead the way," he replied.

When they were out of Joseph and Annie's sights, Jane took her hand and pulled off her glove before tangling their fingers together, rubbing his thumb across her knuckles.

"What did you want to talk about, Patrick?" Lisbon asked after walking in silence for a while.

"I think that, maybe, we should tell everybody that we're together."

"Oh you do, do you?" Lisbon said, looking up at him with an amused smile. "And why do you think that?"

"Just because I'm tired of lying," Jane answered. "Besides, your father already knows about us. So, maybe it won't be long before everyone else finds out that we're together."

Lisbon looked slightly disappointed. "And that's why we should tell everybody? Because you're tired of lying and my father knows."

"Yes. And can't that be enough for right now?" Jane replied, stopping to look at her as he took her other hand, unable to resist raising both to his lips in a gentle caress.

Lisbon closed her eyes at the touch of his mouth on her hands. "If that's what you want then yes."

"Why is it always about what I want?" Jane asked. "I want to know what you want Teresa."

She smiled at him, almost sadly as she opened her eyes again. "Everything I really wanted disappeared when we met ten years ago. I would do anything for you Patrick."

"Really? What if I wanted to stay in the same kind of relationship that we've been had for the past six months?"

"I'd do it," Lisbon answered honestly. "Because that's what you do when you love somebody, you give up your needs and wants for their needs and wants."

With her answer and the look of sincerity in her eyes, Jane was ready to take her in his arms and do all the things he should have done years before. But he forced himself to wait just a little bit longer, they'd waited ten years for each other, two days wouldn't kill them.

He took a deep breath to steady his rapidly beating heart and smiled at her. "So, can we tell your family that we're together then?"

"Yes," Lisbon said her voice quiet as she looked at a plastic snowman and a blowup Santa in the yard across the street from them. "Yes, if that's what you want."

"Teresa, giving up desires and needs for the other person goes both ways," Jane reminded her quietly. "I want to tell your family, but if you don't want to then I am willing to wait until you're fully prepared to tell them."

"No." Lisbon turned back to him and took a deep breath. "No, you're right. We shouldn't lie anymore."

**.**

When they got back, everybody was in the kitchen getting ready for lunch, _Handel's Messiah_ was playing on a little clock radio on top of the refrigerator, and Annie was telling Maggie about a creepy boy who was in her Spanish II class.

"It'll be okay," Jane whispered, squeezing her hand to reassure her. "Your family loves me. Remember?"

"Yes," Lisbon agreed. "But will they love us lying to them all these months, now that is the question."

"Once they here we're together, I'm sure that it won't matter," Jane said, giving her hand another squeeze before walking into the kitchen and clearing his throat to get everybody's attention.

"Are you sure you want to tell them?" She whispered.

"Positive," Jane replied, smiling at everybody as they all looked at him. "Hey, we have something to tell you. . ."

**TBC. . .**

**.**

**Author's Note:**

**Happy Eve before Christmas Eve everybody! Sorry this chapter is way late, and not very well-written, please forgive me for that because I have a lot on my mind. I will try to do better next time. And be finished before Christmas. I can't make any promises though.**

**Love,**

**Holly, 12/23/12_**


	6. Chapter 6

**Shout-Outs: AngryLittlePrincess, Lalalupin, Haveafanfictellme Jisbon, Water-please, GyMusicAddict, meguie, Totorsg, Chymom, aurora151989, Lothlorien Aeterna, and TheBonesGirl33 for their reviews on the last chapter.**

**Disclaimer:**

**Rated T:**

**Author's Note:**

**I want to tell you everything I'm feeling tonight, but I don't want to bore you with TMI. But let's just say, **_**I wish I had a river I could skate away on**_**. **

**Oh, and one more thing. . . the review about Jane/Lisbon and their relationship in this story is still bugging me slightly, and I wish I had thought about this before. But have you ever heard of "the Mirror Has Two Faces" with Jeff Bridges and Barbara Streisand? Yeah, that movie was about a **_**platonic**_**, **_**companionable**_** marriage. And it got really good reviews. Just thought I'd put that out there.**

**.**

**Chapter 6**

_December 24__th__, Christmas Eve_

"Teresa," Jane whispered the next morning, shaking her slightly.

"Mmmh?" She asked, rolling over on her side and looking at him sleepily through hooded eyes.

"I have something for you," Jane replied.

Lisbon yawned. "Can't it wait until tomorrow?" She asked as she buried deeper under the covers and closed her eyes again.

"It _could_," Jane answered. "But I want to do it now! Come on Teresa, I promise you aren't going to regret it."

"Fine," Lisbon finally agreed, yawning again as she opened her eyes fully and stretched out on her back. "But I'm only doing this because if I don't, you're going to bug me about it until I do. What is it?"

"I've been doing a lot of thinking about it and I finally decided something," Jane said as he handed her something.

"Decided what?" Lisbon asked, looking at the present in her hand with furrowed eyebrows. "Jane, you're not making any sense!"

Jane sighed and took the package back, untying the bow as he did. "I know when we first started to date that I'm the one who suggested that we should keep it mostly companionable, so it only seems fitting that I'm the one who tells you that I can't live like that anymore. I want you Teresa and not just in my life, but in every single sense of the word. But first, I need you to do something for me."

Lisbon gasped as he took her hand and placed his wedding in her palm. "Jane, what are you saying!?"

"Before we can move forward in our relationship, I need to get rid of the one thing that's holding us back," Jane answered. "I want you to have my ring as a symbol that I'm fully moving on, that I'm choosing you and the life we can have together."

"Oh Patrick," she whispered breathlessly. "You _don't_ have to do this though."

"I do!" He insisted. "Because I don't just want to spend the rest of my life being companionable, I want to be passionate too."

Lisbon gaped at him. "You heard my conversation with my mother!" she accused.

"Yes I did," Jane admitted. "Joseph—"

"I should have known," Lisbon answered, shaking her head in amusement. "He must have taken you to his bedroom, that's how we used to listen into our dad and mom's private conversations when we were growing up."

"He did," Jane answered. "But I didn't think it was to listen into your conversation."

"I know you Jane! You would have still gone in, _especially_ since you could hear what I was saying."

"You're right," Jane agreed, laughing slightly.

Lisbon smiled at him and then looked down at the ring in her hand. "Are you sure about this?"

"Sure about us?" Jane asked. "Yes, I am. Actually, I'm _more_ than sure; Teresa you are the first person I've been this sure about since my wife."

"Patrick. . . I love you—"

"Are you rejecting me?"

"Shut up!" Lisbon said. "Of course I'm not rejecting you! I want the same things you do."

"You do?" Jane asked. "What if I proposed to you _right_ now? Would you want to marry me?"

"It depends," she replied. "Are you proposing right now?"

"If I did propose to you right here and right now, I'd suggest that we get married tonight."

"Tonight?" Lisbon repeated.

"Well, if you want to be specific about it, we'd be getting married after midnight mass. So, technically we'd be getting married tomorrow," Jane answered.

"Are you insane!?" Lisbon asked. "Do you know how long it takes to plan a wedding?"

"You and I both know that you're not the type to have a huge wedding," Jane said. "If you had it your way, you'd elope. But since nobody in your family would go for that, you'd just want the rest of your family and team members there."

"That is true," Lisbon admitted.

"The team, your brother James and his wife is en route here as we speak, and your father already arranged it with your priest," Jane whispered as he tucked her hair behind her ear. "All you have to do is say yes."

"You took a pretty good risk," Lisbon said. "You didn't know if I'd say yes or no."

"I was pretty sure it would be yes," Jane answered.

"Are you sure about this though? We—"

"I know you're going to say _barely know each other_," Jane interjected. "But we both know that isn't true. We've known each other for ten years, and been together for six months. We know each other better than anybody else knows us. It's true that we don't know each other in the Biblical sense of the word, but that will be fixed."

"And you want to get married _tonight_?" Lisbon asked.

"Yes," Jane replied. "That is, if you say yes."

"Yes," Lisbon said without thinking as she closed her hand around Jane's ring. "I might be crazy for jumping into this, but the answer is yes."

"We're barely jumping into anything—" Jane started, but was cut off by Lisbon's lips on his, sealing their engagement with the sweetest of kisses.

The door burst open and Lisbon's family spilled in, all of them talking at once as they offered them congratulations and welcomed Jane to the family.

**.**

"You and Jane!" Van Pelt exclaimed as she climbed into Peter's SUV. "Who'd have thought? I mean, I always _hoped_ that you two would get together. But I didn't actually ever think it would happen! I'm _SO _happy for you two. Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Lisbon said, smiling at her.

Cho stopped Jane before he closed the trunk. "I know about now that you're expecting somebody to give you a speech along the lines of _if you hurt her_, but I'm not going to do that. Because I know that you won't to hurt her. So, I'm just going to offer you my heartfelt congratulations—"

"And say _finally_!" Rigsby added as he joined them, trying to juggle his and Van Pelt's suitcases at the same time.

Jane smiled. "Thank you to the both of you."

"You told him that we weren't going to give him the _if you hurt her _speech?" Rigsby asked Cho.

"Yes," Cho answered.

"Good," Rigsby said, adjusting his carry-on bag as he turned to Jane. "I will say this though; I cannot believe that you two kept your relationship a secret for so long, or that you actually convinced Lisbon to marry you on such short notice."

Jane smirked. "Well, the reason we were able to keep our relationship a secret for so long is because everybody in the whole building already thought we were together. And as for convincing Lisbon to marry me on such short notice, well Rigsby, all I can do is chalk _that_ up to a Christmas miracle."

"Since when do you believe in miracles?" Cho quipped.

Jane glanced at Lisbon, who was tugging at her ski hat while she chatted with Van Pelt, and smiled. "I don't know, really," he answered. "Maybe it was the day I met Lisbon, or maybe it was the moment I realized that I loved her. Maybe it was the second she agreed to date me, or maybe I just realized it today when she agreed to marry me—"

"We better get going!" Lisbon called out the window. "My mom just texted me asking where we were and when we were planning on getting back to the house! The guys are waiting to take you out, and my cousin just brought a couple dresses over that she wants me to try on! We only have eight hours Patrick!"

"Coming dear!" He replied, smiling at Rigsby and Cho as he slammed the trunk shut. "Come along boys, the only thing worse than keeping one Lisbon woman waiting is keeping two of them waiting."

"I heard that!" Lisbon replied.

"You were supposed to," Jane answered, as he got into the front seat and winked at her, taking her hand even though he knew the team was watching. It would probably be the only time he would able to do it in front of them without her laying into him about it.

"You know, it isn't too late to say _no_," Cho teased as Lisbon put the car into drive and left the airport.

"I know," Lisbon replied, sighing with a fake air of mourning. "But he's put so much effort into planning this wedding that it wouldn't seem right to back out now. Besides all that, I love him. And you don't back out on somebody when you love them. Not ever."

**TBC. . .**

**Author's Note II:**

**Yeah, I'll admit the ending was kind of abrupt. But if I didn't end it there, I would have gone on forever and ever and it wouldn't have ended well. I hope you liked it though, if you did I would LOVE to hear your thoughts. One more chapter left, and this story will be done. Hopefully I'll have it posted sooner than later.**

**Merry Christmas everybody.**

**All my love,**

**Holly, 12/25/2012_**


	7. Chapter 7

**Shout-outs: princesskitty68, AngryLittlePrincess, Water-please, Meguie, Haveafanfictellme Jisbon, Totorsg, Lalalupin, TheBonesGirl33, Azraelean, GyMusicAddict, CastleTyger, & Lothlorien Aeterna**

**Disclaimer: **

**I own NOTHING!**

**Rated: T (slight M)**

**.**

**Chapter 7**

_Midnight, Christmas Day_

Lisbon had to remind herself to breathe as she peeked into the church sanctuary and saw Jane waiting for her at the end of the aisle as the last of the church-goers disappeared out into the cold, dark night.

"It's time," Peter whispered as he came up behind her and threaded his arm through her's. "Are you ready?"

"Ready," she confirmed, not looking away from Jane for a second.

He caught her gaze and smiled at her, washing the dull fear right from her system. She knew everything would be fine, that they would be fine. The way he was smiling at her, made her want to run down the aisle and into his arms.

She could barely wait for her new life with Jane to begin.

The ceremony went by in a blur, Lisbon barely registered her father giving her away or the vows she and Jane exchanged. The next thing she knew, Jane was sliding a ring on her finger and sealing their promise with a kiss.

**.**

"I got you and Patrick a free night at the James," Peter said, handing Lisbon a plastic card with the logo of the hotel stamped on it and a set of car keys. "The manager owed me a favor, so I decided to use it for you guys. I thought you'd like to spend your first night as husband and wife alone."

"Thank you," Lisbon answered as she accepted the keys and looked over where Jane was waiting for her at the church entrance.

Peter nodded at him. "He's waiting for you."

Lisbon stood on tip-toe and gave her father a tight hug. "I love you dad."

"I love you too sweetie," Peter replied, closing his eyes and holding her close like he did when she was a little girl. "And I'm glad you found a nice guy, who actually loves and deserves you, because _you_ deserve it. You better treat each other good, okay?"

"We will," Lisbon promised, kissing him impulsively on the cheek. "I'll see you the morning, dad."

"Go on now! You don't want to keep him waiting. It's getting really late," Peter said.

**.**

Jane was surrounded by candlelight and Lisbon's fruity Bath & Body perfume. Her hair fell over his face in a curtain of espresso brown as she leaned in and kissed him tenderly on the lips, her mouth tasted like expensive champagne and green apple Chap Stick. Her nearness caused something to stir up in the bottom of his stomach.

A feeling just shy of butterflies.

He closed his eyes and pulled her impossibly closer, savoring the pressure of her lips against his, reciprocating the kiss almost reverently. The past two days, they'd kissed a few times and it had been good, but it didn't compare to the sweetness of this moment.

In this lavish hotel room, everything was changing between them; their world was shifting and making them into something even more beautiful than they were before. He sighed inaudibly as she stopped kissing him and met his eyes; her green orbs sparkled in the mixture of moon and candlelight as she looked at him wordlessly for a moment, like she couldn't believe they were actually _together_ after so many years of fighting it.

"I love you Mrs. Jane," he whispered, tangling his hand in her dark locks.

Lisbon smiled then, a stunning smile that she only reserved for him. "I love you too," she whispered back.

Jane kissed _her _this time as he flipped her on her back and removed her white sweater before working on the buttons of her simple white dress as she leaned up and turned out the light before untying his bowtie and tossing it aside.

**.**

_Christmas morning_

She was woken up to gentle kisses on her bare shoulder, she sighed contentedly. "Hey," she said.

"Hey," Jane answered. "You realize our family is waiting for us to come home and open gifts."

"Who called?"

"Annie texted me fifteen minutes ago to ask where we were," he replied.

"Of course she did," Lisbon said, sitting up and wrapping the sheets around her. "Annie's mature for her age, but not when it comes to Christmas. She starts planning everybody's gifts in August, and she writes her own list the day after Halloween."

"Well, I told her that we'd be there as soon as you woke up," Jane said.

"Oh, I see. So, you decided to take matters into your own hands and wake me up."

"I was _not_ planning on waking you up!" Jane protested. "It isn't my fault that you're a light sleeper—"

"You're dressed," Lisbon mused, observing his casual jeans and gaudy sweater.

"And I'm showered," Jane added.

"Who on earth got you to put on such an ugly sweater?" She asked, raising her eyebrows as she reached out and touched the red jingle bell that was standing in as Rudolph's nose.

"Joseph," Jane answered. "He said that it's a family tradition for all the men in the family to wear an ugly sweater on Christmas morning. You don't like it?"

"Oh, it's _very _nice!" Lisbon said, her eyes growing wide. "It's just that I'm used to seeing you in your three-piece suit. But I could _try _and get used to you in this."

"Do you want me to change?"

"No," Lisbon replied as she got to her knees and kissed him, before pulling back and looking at it again. "Well. . . maybe."

"Okay," Jane agreed, pulling the sweater over his head and tossing it aside.

Lisbon laughed as she put her hands on his bare shoulders. "I hope you brought something else to wear."

"Well, I was hoping you'd let me join in the family tradition and wear the ugly Rudolph sweater," Jane admitted. "Silly of me, isn't it?"

"Put it back on then," Lisbon said.

"Later," Jane answered, pulling her a little closer and kissing her.

It was a while before they returned to the Lisbon house to open gifts.

**.**

"There you are," Lisbon said as she stepped out onto the porch and draped a heavy winter coat over Jane's shoulders. "I was wondering where you'd gotten to."

"It's snowing," Jane replied.

"It does that a lot here," Lisbon answered, smiling at him as she slipped a hand under his coat. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine," Jane assured her. "I was just thinking about last night."

"You don't regret it, do you?" Lisbon asked, only half-teasing.

"The only thing I'd regret about you is not doing what we're doing right now," Jane said. "What about you? Do you regret getting married so quickly? Right now are you wishing that we had waited for a sunny day in June to get married and had a huge reception that included a first dance and a cake your parents probably couldn't afford?"

"No," Lisbon whispered. "The way we did it was completely and utterly us. A huge deal wedding in June with a church full of people and a cake wouldn't have made sense for us. We've never been huge, the way we fell in love wasn't even a huge deal. One day we just realized we were and had been for a while. As for the first dance, we have our whole lives ahead of us to have a first dance. Or we could dance right now, if you'd like."

"There's no music though," Jane said. "And there's definitely not enough room on this porch to dance."

"Come on," Lisbon answered, dragging him down the steps and onto the snowy lawn, she put her arms around him and lay her head on his chest, whispering the first few words of a song from an old Barbara Streisand movie. _"It started over coffee, we started out as friends, it's funny how from simple things the best things begin—"_

"You know, I'm not sad or disappointed," Jane told her. "I'm just so—"

"Happy?" Lisbon finished for him as she looked up into his eyes.

"No, not happy. I don't think there's a word that could describe what I feel right now," Jane answered. "What I feel for _you_ right now," he added as an afterthought.

"It's okay. We have our whole lives together for you to figure out it is what you want to say," Lisbon said.

And then she kissed him, her pulse racing slightly as she realized as he kissed her back and she realized how far they'd come in three days.

She wasn't complaining though.

It was the best Christmas gift she could have ever received.

**_The End_**

**Author's Note:**

**The end of another story, I feel kind of sad about it because this one was a BLAST to write. Thanks to everybody who took this journey with me (including my silent readers). Your support was appreciated.**

**My next story will be my New Year's one-shot. You'll be able to find it in my "That's How it Should Be" collection. **

**I hope the wedding night wasn't M worthy. I tried to keep it as clean as possible. Tell me what you thought!**

**Lots of love,**

**Holly, 12/28/2012_**


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